Paella with seafood - recipes with photos. Paella is the national Spanish dish

Food lovers will be interested in an entertaining story about famous dish Spanish cuisine - paella. If you are in your kitchen not only to look in the refrigerator, but also to cook something new, to please delicious dish yourself and your family, then you should definitely take note. So, what is paella, what is the history of its origin, how do the Spaniards treat it? How many varieties of this national dish are there?

Where does paella come from?

Many uninitiated ordinary people who have heard this name consider it exclusively spanish food, although for the appearance of paella we must thank not the whole country, but only Valencia - it was in this Spanish city that they began to prepare rice, tinting it with saffron and adding olive oil. Already in those days they tried to experiment with the ingredients of paella, including chicken meat in the dish, various vegetables and seafood. The dish was served on March 19, when St. Joseph's Day or San Jose (Dia de San Jose) was celebrated, and this tradition continues in our time, while paella is prepared not only on the holiday, but also on other days. For example, on Sundays, gathering family members at the table and inviting guests. Well, in tourist areas almost every restaurant you come across is ready to feed you paella.

Family meeting with paella

First paella

Probably every resident of Spain knows how to cook paella from an early age. Not a single city holiday, especially in Valencia, is complete without paella being prepared right on its streets as the main treat symbolizing Spanish cuisine. Some of the first mentions of the preparation of this dish relate to the region of Lake Albufera, located south of Valencia, where rice was cultivated for centuries. They say that it was on the banks of the Albufera, in the village of El Palmar, that the first paella was once prepared.

Leftovers or not leftovers?

Initially, eating paella was common only in the lower strata of society. There is an interesting version according to which the origin of the word itself is attributed to the Arabic language, where it means “leftovers,” since among Arab sailors it was not considered shameful to combine the remains of a previous meal into a new dish. Of course, is it really possible to throw away food that was not eaten at the master’s table! It’s better to “conjure” it a little more and feed a bunch of hungry sailors.

About the meaning of the word "paella"

It is officially accepted that the origin of the word is from the Latin concept patella, which means “frying pan”. In Valencian, “frying pan” sounds like paella - close in meaning to the Castilian concept of padilla (small oven), Italian padella (frying pan), French poêle (frying pan, oven), Polish patelnia (frying pan). Among the Valencians, this word generally refers to all types of pans, including dishes intended for preparing paella.

How to prepare paella

The most famous recipes Three varieties are considered to be very popular and each of them uses its own composition of ingredients:

Paella Valenciana- paella Valenciana with chicken, rabbit, legumes and vegetables.
paella de marisco- paella with seafood (shrimp, mussels, squid, etc.).
paella mixta- paella mix with different ingredients.

If you are going to cook a type of paella with seafood and... black rice, then you cannot do without cuttlefish ink (it is they that give the rice its color), which is freely sold in many Spanish and some large Russian stores. Of course, these are just examples of the main types, but in any paella they remain unchanged general principles preparing the dishes discussed below.

General principles for preparing paella

So, the main thing is to take into account the most basic principles so that the paella is appetizing and tasty.

The wide variety of ingredients used in the preparation of paella makes this dish very popular. In different regions they adapt in their own way, which serves to create new recipes, of which, according to the Spaniards, there are more than three hundred. If we talk about the classic paella recipe, it traditionally uses rice, several types of fish, and seafood. In addition to these ingredients, it is also prepared with chicken, adding spices, herbs and white wine. There are regions where Spanish paella, in the absence of rice, is prepared from beans. In any case, this is not dietary at all, but nutritious and very tasty dish, with the help of which you can easily satisfy your hunger.

You will hardly find many Spanish restaurants where this dish is not on the menu. I will say more - because of its popularity, paella is found in almost all self-respecting European restaurants and everyone prepares it in their own way, experimenting with varieties of all its components.

We specifically do not write one specific paella recipe because the choice is too large and depends solely on your preferences. BUT there will be a video at the end of the article preparations with description process of preparing paella with seafood- it will be clearer this way.

In the future, we plan to visit the Spaniards and film the entire cooking process, making a separate article about it (with all the chef’s secrets). So stay in touch and stay tuned, we will inform you when such an article is published in the update newsletter.

Show your imagination

If we talk about a huge number paella recipes in the national cuisine of Spain, then its main ingredients must remain unchanged. Everything else is a matter of taste and imagination. For example, according to the “Rice with Crust” recipe, blood sausage is a mandatory ingredient.

There are recipes with spicy Spanish pork sausage chorizo, which they like to add to paella. If you want, you can use other sausages and sausages, eggs, mussels or shrimp, meatballs and crumbs white bread, adding Bell pepper, tomatoes, onions and garlic, fresh herbs, lemon slices and green pea, wine and broth. The main thing is that the combination of products is appetizing in appearance and taste. With the advent of multicookers, cooking paella has become much easier and many housewives, having one of the recipes at hand, do an excellent job preparing this dish in their kitchen.

Analogues of paella in other countries

IN eastern countries can be considered an analogue of paella pilaf, in Italy - risotto(risotto), and Creoles prepare a similar dish called jambalaya(jambalaya). Even among Valencian dishes there are similarities with paella - fideua(fideua). But instead of rice, vermicelli is placed in it, and the appearance of such a dish is attributed to the cook of the fishing boat, Juan Bautista Pascual. According to rumors, the sailors did not appreciate this innovation in the menu, but over time the dish gained its popularity. Nowadays there is even an annual competition, which is held in one of the cities of the Grandia autonomy, to prepare the best fideua.

To summarize

If you don't have a cookbook with recipes on hand Spanish paella, then you can find a suitable option for yourself on the Internet. You can also add your own imagination to the cooking principles described above, and then the dish will acquire its own unique flavor. As you can see, in order to taste paella, you don’t have to leave the area. own kitchen. But if you are on holiday in Spain, you will hardly be able to resist going to one of the many local restaurants, where you will be served real spanish dish.

By the way, red wine or sangria is perfect for paella, which you can prepare according to our favorite recipe described.

It should be remembered that in restaurants paella is prepared for several people at once (usually two to four), and not in portions. It is better to order it in the company of friends or family. If somewhere they offer a portion for one, then most likely the paella was prepared earlier (and it is not known how), frozen and will simply be reheated - this is not the same at all.

In conclusion, we offer you recipe video classic paella with seafood by which even beginners can understand the whole process and repeat it at home

The name of the delicious national Spanish dish, paella, comes from the Latin word “patella,” which meant “a tall frying pan with two handles.” Today, paella is popular not only in Valencia, where it is considered a kind of business card, but also in all European countries. Paella offered best restaurants world's outstanding chefs. However, you can prepare paella at home, on your own, since the recipe is simple, and all the products necessary for cooking can be purchased at the nearest supermarket.

According to one legend, the dish “paella” was invented by the servants of the Moorish kings, who, after the feasts of the Arab conquerors, collected everything that was left from the tables (chicken, meat, fish, seafood) and cooked it with rice, as a result of which the dish got its name ( Paella means "leftovers" in Arabic.)

So, if you decide to cook paella at home, you should first purchase necessary products. Here is the list of ingredients for 4 servings of paella:

Rice 300 gr.
Garlic 3 cloves.
1 medium onion.
Dry white wine 200 ml (1 glass)
Chicken or fish broth 0.5 liters. Ideally, take 0.25 liters of chicken and 0.25 liters of fish.
2-3 pcs. chicken fillet.
300-400 grams of seafood (mussels, shrimp, squid, octopus).
Sugar 1 tsp.
Salt pepper, ground paprika, saffron, ground pepper Chile.
Olive oil 4 tbsp.
Tomatoes 4-5 pcs.
Red bell pepper 1 PC.
Green peas 100 grams.
Half a lemon.
Greens (parsley, dill).

The Spaniards claim that true paella can only be cooked on a live fire, to the sound of castanets, and the cook must be a purebred Spanish macho, because initially only men were trusted to cook this National dish. But, as practice shows, no less tasty and aromatic paella can be prepared at home, the main thing is to cook with soul and good mood.

1. So, first step. Finely chop the onion and garlic, fry them in a frying pan over olive oil until golden brown. Add finely chopped peeled tomatoes and, stirring, fry for 1-2 minutes.

2. Add sugar, paprika, chili. Mix.

3. Pour rice into the pan.

4. Add warmed up to 70-80 degrees dry wine. When heating it, be careful not to let it boil under any circumstances!

5. Cook over low heat for 3-4 minutes, until the wine begins to evaporate.

6. Once the wine has almost evaporated, add the warm broth and saffron. Salt well.

7. Cover with a lid and simmer over low heat for 10-14 minutes.

8. After this add the chopped in small pieces chicken fillet, stir, cook for 5-6 minutes under the lid.

9. Add green peas and diced bell pepper. Simmer for 2 minutes.

10 . Lastly, place the seafood on top of the dish, cover and cook for another 1-2 minutes. After this, turn off the heat and let the paella brew for 5-7 minutes.

11. Before serving, garnish the dish with herbs and lemon slices.

As you can see, there is nothing complicated in preparing paella, but you will definitely like this dish and all your guests will enjoy it. On average, paella takes 45 minutes to prepare and should be served hot.

Paella is one of the most popular dishes Spanish cuisine. There are more than 300 varieties of it. The treat is traditionally prepared from rice with the addition of saffron, olive oil and other ingredients. Many people think that seafood paella is a very difficult dish for beginners, but this is not so.

How to cook paella at home

Cooking paella takes about an hour, taking into account the preparation of ingredients, so it cannot be called a dish a quick fix. But it’s perfect for lunch on a weekend. The list of ingredients may vary depending on the recipe, but the main ones will always include seafood, rice and fragrant saffron. Spanish chefs use a special frying pan called a paellera. It is a large, heavy metal bowl with a flat bottom and low sides. For home cooking will do regular cast iron frying pan with a flat bottom.

What kind of rice is needed for paella?

It is important to choose the right rice for paella so that the dish turns out really tasty. Ideal options Spanish round-grain varieties of this crop, such as bomba or arborio, will become available, but they are not available to everyone. As an alternative, you can use any other round rice, except for basmati and jasmine varieties - they do not absorb moisture well and are not suitable for aromatic Spanish dishes. Cooks generally do not recommend adding long rice to paella.

Paella with seafood - recipe with photos

For the first time, it is better to choose a recipe for paella with seafood that is as close as possible to the classic one. The dish is prepared by analogy with Uzbek pilaf: first, vegetables are sauteed, fish and other seafood are fried, rice is added and everything is simmered over low heat. It is important to follow the recommendations for the duration of processing of ingredients: overcooked squids become tough and unpleasant to the taste, and shrimp become tough. An essential component is saffron, which gives rice its characteristic golden color.

Classic Spanish seafood paella

Cooking time: 1 hour.
Number of servings: 8-12 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 238 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch.
Cuisine: Spanish.

It’s hard to figure out which paella recipe is classic. According to legend, this Spanish pilaf contains not only seafood, but also meat, poultry and vegetables. However, the version with seafood is considered to be a classic paella. Residents of Valencia say that you will never, under any circumstances, find a single onion in paella. Otherwise, some ingredients can be replaced, leaving the base of the dish unchanged.

Ingredients:

squid – 300 g;
shrimp, mussels, scallops – 300 g;
tomatoes – 150 g;
green peas – 100 g;
garlic – 2-3 cloves;
white wine – 100 g;
Short grain rice – 1.5 tbsp.;
saffron – 1 pinch.

Cooking method:

Peel the shrimp, mussels, scallops (do not throw away the shells, make broth from them).
Prepare broth from shells, garlic, spices. Pour these ingredients into 500 ml of water and cook for 20-25 minutes.
Pour 2 tablespoons of water over the saffron. Let it brew.
Fry in oil Seafood Cocktail, add finely grated garlic.
Season with salt, pepper, and add squid cut into half rings.
Cut the tomatoes into medium-sized cubes or grate them (remove the peel).
Lightly fry the seafood mixture, after 5-10 minutes add the tomatoes and peas.
Pour the rice into the pan, stir well and pour in the broth and white wine.
After 10-15 minutes, season with saffron and simmer until done.

Paella with seafood - recipe in a slow cooker

Cooking time: 30-50 minutes.
Calorie content of the dish: 198 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch.
Cuisine: Italian.

Progress does not stand still; new miracles of technology are appearing in the kitchen. They help prepare delicious and healthy food, such as aromatic paella with seafood in a slow cooker. This traditional dish in Spain is usually served only for lunch. It is believed that a mixture of seafood and meat is very difficult to digest in the evening, and even more so before bed.

Ingredients:

fresh bell pepper – 120 g;
round rice – 300 g;
sea cocktail – 500 g;
chicken fillet – 250 g;
garlic – 3-4 cloves;
saffron – 1 pinch;
salt, pepper - to taste;
olive oil – 2 tbsp. l.;
lemon – 60-70 g.

Cooking method:

Heat a small amount of oil in a multicooker bowl and fry seafood in it.
When a golden crust begins to appear on them, add chopped garlic and thinly sliced pepper.
After 5-8 minutes, add finely chopped chicken fillet, saffron, and spices.
After another 10 minutes, add dry rice, mix everything well, pour in 1 glass of water or broth.
Turn on the multicooker to the “Pilaf” or “Rice” mode and simmer until done. Sprinkle lightly with lemon juice before serving.

Paella with shrimp

Number of servings: 4-6 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 197 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch.
Cuisine: Spanish.
Difficulty of preparation: medium.

If you are not a big fan of sea life (mussels, squid), then the shrimp paella recipe will be an excellent alternative for you. This dish is no less tasty than the classic one, it can be varied big amount favorite vegetables and meat additives. If desired, you can use fish or vegetable broth, which will give an even richer aroma and taste to the rice.

Ingredients:

bell pepper – 1 pc.;
garlic – 3-4 cloves;
saffron – 1 pinch;
round rice – 300 g;
peeled shrimp – 400 g;
canned corn - to taste;
broth - 1 l;
parsley - to taste;
white wine – 50 ml;
tomatoes – 2-3 pcs.;
salt pepper, lemon juice- taste.

Cooking method:

Chop the sweet pepper into thin strips and chop the garlic small pieces.
Remove the skin from the tomatoes and cut them into cubes.
Saute the peppers and garlic for 3-5 minutes, then add rice, saffron, and spices to them.
After 5-7 minutes, add tomatoes, water, shrimp, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low.
5-10 minutes before cooking, pour white wine into the dish, add herbs and corn.

Paella recipe with seafood and chicken

Cooking time: 30-45 minutes.
Number of servings: 5-7 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 289 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch.
Cuisine: Spanish.
Difficulty of preparation: easy.

To cook rice with chicken and seafood, you don’t need any complicated manipulations. This treat is prepared similarly to the usual pilaf, with the only difference being that seafood and chicken fillet are used instead of lamb. Otherwise, the process is very similar, so even a beginner can prepare delicious paella. culinary affairs. It is best to simmer it in a deep cauldron with thick walls, like pilaf.

Ingredients:

round rice – 400 g;
chicken fillet – 250 g;
frozen sea cocktail – 400 g;
sweet pepper – 1 pc.;
tomatoes – 2-3 pcs.;
garlic – 3-4 cloves;
water or broth – 600-700 ml;
saffron – ½ tsp;
dry white wine – 50-70 ml;
salt, allspice- taste.

Cooking method:

Heat a little in a cauldron vegetable oil.
Cut the fillet into cubes, fry with chopped garlic until golden brown.
Separately, fry the seafood until excess moisture has evaporated.
Cut tomatoes and peppers into cubes, add to chicken meat, fry for 7-9 minutes.
Pour dry rice into the pan, fry for 2-3 minutes, then add seafood.
Fill the paella with broth, add spices and white wine.
After the rice boils, reduce the heat to low and simmer until tender without stirring.
Stir before serving.

Paella with seafood from Yulia Vysotskaya

Cooking time: 1 hour.
Number of servings: 3-4 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 179 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch.
Cuisine: Spanish.
Difficulty of preparation: easy.

We present to you a recipe for paella with seafood from Yulia Vysotskaya. She shares how to prepare a treat quickly, and at the same time make it tasty and healthy. This recipe will especially appeal to those who are watching their figure - it can be classified as low-calorie due to large quantity vegetables You can add your own favorite ingredients to customize your paella.

Ingredients:

shrimp – 15 pcs.;
celery (stems) – ¼ piece;
rice – 100 g;
carrots – 100 g;
bell pepper – 100 g;
garlic – 2-3 cloves;
salt, peppercorns - to taste;
tomato paste – 30-40 g;
lemon juice - for sprinkling.

Cooking method:

Boil the shrimp in salted water tinted with saffron, do not drain the broth.
Chop the vegetables into cubes and fry in a small amount of oil or water.
Pour in rice, spices, add tomato paste, fill everything with shrimp broth.
Mix well, simmer for low heat until ready.
Sprinkle with lemon juice before serving.

Sea cocktail paella

Cooking time: 45-55 minutes.
Number of servings: 2-3 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 239 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch.
Cuisine: Spanish.
Difficulty of preparation: easy.

Paella with sea cocktail is prepared in the same way classic recipe, but you don’t need to buy seafood separately to prepare it - you can use the available mixture. This is a good alternative for instant cooking hearty dinner after a hard day at work. You should first defrost the seafood mixture and warm it up a little in thick-walled frying pan so that excess moisture evaporates.

Ingredients:

rice for paella – 130 g;
sweet pepper – ½ piece;
dried garlic – ½ tsp;
vegetable broth – 400 ml;
saffron – ½ tsp;
sea cocktail – 200 g;
parsley - to taste

Cooking method:

Prepare broth from any vegetables with spices.
Chop the pepper into thin strips.
Fry seafood with garlic until golden brown.
Add saffron and salt to taste.
Pour in the rice, mix well, pour in the broth.
Simmer under closed lid until done, garnish with parsley.

Paella with seafood - a simple recipe

Cooking time: 40-45 minutes.
Number of servings: 3-5 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 236 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch.
Cuisine: Spanish.
Difficulty of preparation: easy.

If you haven’t cooked Spanish cuisine before, then a simple paella with seafood is... great option to test your strength. All ingredients are available at any major store or supermarket. It is best to choose chilled fish, low-fat varieties. Pollock, lemonema or peled are suitable, but if you wish, you can take any other type of fish that you like.

Ingredients:

rice – 1.5 cups;
shrimp – 300 g;
fish – 300 g;
canned peas– 200 g;
garlic – 2 cloves;
broth - 3 cups;
salt, pepper, saffron - to taste.

Cooking method:

Peel the shrimp and boil in broth with spices.
Fry garlic with finely chopped fish.
Add shrimp, rice, peas.
Mix well, pour in shrimp broth.
Simmer until the broth has completely evaporated.

Paella with fish and seafood

Cooking time: 45-55 minutes.
Number of servings: 5 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 218 kcal.
Purpose: for lunch.
Cuisine: Spanish.
Difficulty of preparation: easy.

Delicious paella with seafood and fish is easy and quick to prepare and different delicate aroma. Moreover, this healthy cocktail, which contains proteins, iodine, minerals and omega-3 acids necessary for health. This treat is especially useful for women and people on a diet. It is recommended to consume seafood at least once a week to maintain the shine and strength of hair, nails and skin.

Ingredients:

frozen seafood cocktail – 250 g;
fish fillet – 250 g;
green beans– 200 g;
sweet pepper – 100 g;
tomatoes or tomato paste – 100 g;
dried garlic – 1 tsp;
round rice - 3 cups;
broth - 6 glasses;
salt, paprika, saffron - to taste.

Cooking method:

Fry seafood and fish for 2-3 minutes. Place the mixture in a separate bowl.
In the liquid that remains after cooking the fish, simmer the vegetables, chopped as you like. Add tomatoes or tomato paste and spices.
Pour in the rice, add 1 cup of broth, stir and simmer for 5-10 minutes.
Gradually add broth until the rice is completely cooked.
Grind the herbs and garlic in a blender. Add some broth to make a sauce.
Pour the sauce over the finished paella. Serve to the table.

Black paella with seafood

Cooking time: 1 hour.
Number of servings: 5-8 persons.
Calorie content of the dish: 325 kcal per 100 g.
Purpose: for lunch.
Cuisine: Spanish.
Difficulty of preparation: difficult.

How to cook black rice with cuttlefish ink? At first glance, this recipe may seem strange and inedible, but it is not so. Cuttlefish ink has wide range Applications: they are used in medicine, used to obtain paint, and also added to dishes as natural dye. Distinctive feature This substance is its specific salty marine taste.

Ingredients:

Bomba rice – 180 g;
king prawns- 4 things.;
almejas (molluscs) – 4 pcs.;
gambones – 4 pcs.;
langoustine – 4 pcs.;
canned peas– 20-50 g;
cuttlefish – 100 g;
cuttlefish ink – 5 g;
dried garlic – 1 tsp;
squid – 120-150 g;
fish broth – 700-750 ml;
saffron, spices - to taste.

Cooking method:

Heat olive oil, add dried garlic.
Fry almejas with langoustine and gambones in it.
Add finely chopped cuttlefish and squid, fry for 30 seconds and remove from heat.
In another pan, fry the shrimp.
Place the seafood mixture back on the stove, fill it with broth, and add cuttlefish ink.
As soon as the mixture boils, pour the rice into it and bring to a boil.
After 15-17 minutes, add herbs, spices, and peas.
Garnish with shrimp before serving.

Spices for paella

Properly selected spices for seafood paella will add a unique flavor to your dish. But you need to choose them very carefully, because not all seasonings are suitable for paella. Can buy ready set spices, but as practice shows, their composition is also different, so you need to choose correctly. The main thing is to achieve the ideal balance of aromas and tastes, then your cooking masterpiece will be appreciated.

The following spices and herbs are suitable for paella:

saffron (crushed or stigmas);
anise;
cardamom;
carnation;
Bell pepper;
turmeric;
curry;
tarragon;
Chile.

Depending on your taste preferences, you can combine different herbs and spices until you find the optimal mixture. The only constant ingredient is saffron. It gives the same aroma and taste that is so praised and appreciated by lovers of Spanish cuisine. You should be careful with curry and anise - they have a very strong, specific aroma that can overpower the taste of paella.

Video: Spanish paella

Follow me as I list them clockwise, starting from twelve o'clock: peeled tomatoes, chicken bouillon, carabineri shrimp, olive oil, paprika, saffron, beans, gumbo peppers, garlic, onion, chili pepper (not at all, not spicy at all!) lightly boiled chicken legs, fillet with chicken breast and, of course, the bomb!

Don't be so scared, why are you so scared? This is Spanish rice, a special variety, it’s called the bomb!
This is a special rice intended for paella. Or rather, this paella was formed around this rice and products that have been available in Valencia for the last five hundred years.
When in front of you is such magnificent rice, the appearance of which you have been waiting for several years, demanding it at the market “bring Spanish bomba rice, bring Spanish bomba rice,” and suddenly they bring it and say “that’s it, they brought it, come, buy what you want to cook from it “Will you be?”, in general, at such an exciting moment, was it surprising to forget the chorizo sausage? You’ll forget about the jamon, you’ll forget to drink to the success of the enterprise, not only about the chorizo!
Okay, I'll eat this sausage without paella. After all, all the same, noble connoisseurs of noble Spanish paella will find something to accuse me of.
You’re familiar with the comments under pilaf recipes: “Well, no, it’s not pilaf, it’s some kind of rice porridge with meat, since you don’t have cumin in your pilaf” or “ real pilaf only from..."?
In general, there is exactly as much controversy around paella in Spain as we have around real borscht, rice porridge with meat and the opposition coordinating council.
Well, what should I do? I need to work on a book about pilaf, and pilaf is such a dish - pilaf spreads across the entire continent, from Korea to Spain, so to talk about the dev-zira, yellow carrots and the fat tail won’t always work out and I still have a lot of work to do.

Let's start by replacing the fat tail with olive oil. Can you imagine what a laugh it is - there, in Spain, they don’t have fat tails, but they do have olive oil. And so they cook paella in olive oil. Well, they say so, but in reality, whatever oil is available, that’s what they pour in. Everything is like ours!
Do you remember that onion that was fried in the very beginning? cottonseed oil, preparing pilaf? So, instead of that onion, I took carabineri shrimp shells. Now I’ll explain everything!
The fact is that these shrimp - amazing product. Even when raw, they are already red, but this is not the main thing. If I fry them just like that, for the purpose of eating, then I don’t add any spices to them and don’t even add salt - their taste and aroma are so self-sufficient. But for frying these shrimps, I pour a little more oil than usual - it becomes very tasty, the shrimp impart their luxurious, incomparable taste into the oil and even give the oil a reddish tint. So I decided to flavor the paella oil with their shells. Well, shouldn’t we just throw away this taste and smell?
Of course, if my paella (the frying pan for preparing paella, which gave the name to this dish) was larger, I could cook these huge shrimps whole, I could add any kind of lobster, vongula, or something else they would bring from the Mediterranean Sea, but here The problem is that my frying pan is small, only 34 cm in diameter, so I had to count the volume of food and save space.
So, listen, if you don’t have carabinieri, but regular shrimp, then all of the above does not concern you, but read on - maybe it will come in handy.

Flavor the oil as usual with onion and garlic until it smells good.
Yes, I completely forgot to say: live fire is also desirable under paella, just like under pilaf. And if it is not live, but gas, then the burner should have two or three rings in order to distribute the heat as evenly as possible. This is very, very important!
But if you have a copper frying pan, or a cast iron frying pan, but you have a divider and a powerful enough burner, then everything will work out very well, don’t worry. Moreover, you don’t need too much heat, like for cooking pilaf! Fire and heating must be uniform - this is the main condition.

Do you know why I took boiled chicken legs? Even if they are not cooked until ready, here, in the frying pan, they will brown and cook as expected. Otherwise, my chicken, as always, is rustic. So I removed her breasts, left them raw, and made broth from the rest. Well, while I was cooking the broth, I chopped off my legs.
Listen to me just a minute: if you don’t have any canned own juice tomatoes, then peel the regular ones, cut them, and fry them. There are some eccentrics who also remove tomato seeds. For what?

You need to remove the seeds and membranes from the peppers, otherwise they will give off bitterness.

Here you go. Chicken breast strips, green beans, salt, paprika. As soon as the oil is fried, the oil smells even tastier...

Let's pour the broth!
Do you understand how important it is to have good broth and, God forbid, listen to Alexei Zimin?
Boil the chicken carcass in a small amount of water, add an onion, carrots, peppercorns, a couple of clove buds, Bay leaf, not to say bouquet garni - what kind of cube is this? What kind of natural one? Natural broth is what sits on the stove and smells like a good, cozy home, and not like a doshirak!
I’ll tell you one more thing: this Zimin, when he puts the cubes into the pan in front of the cameras, he probably holds one hand behind him - he crosses his fingers on it and doesn’t show this fig to advertisers, because everyone really, really needs money, and the cubes are no longer everyone, or at least not very much.

And of course, those who don’t have cubes know well that since it’s Spain, then there’s saffron for you! There someone adds saffron hairs directly, and we all do it in our own way, in Persian, in Azerbaijani - we grind the saffron with salt, pour boiling water over it, let it brew - this is saffron, this is this infusion, this is this natural color holiday!

Do these Spaniards know how they pack rice? Crisscross. Fffff!
The Arabs planted rice in Valencia during the conquest, and therefore, after the reconquista, they even wanted to root out rice as a purely Muslim culture, and, besides, the Christian Spaniards saw that the Arabs, when planting rice, certainly said “in the name of the Lord” - “ Bismilla-rahmon-rahim,” as Uzbek chefs still say today when adding rice to pilaf. But then they thought, “It’s delicious! What should we do? We’re not fools, even though we kicked out the Arabs and Jews?” and decided to lay the rice crosswise, like “pig-pig, turn into crucian carp” or “there was a boar, became a ram, there was a boar, became a ram.” Well, you understand, right? After all, this is food, not feed! There is also a spiritual component and superstitions here.

But for cooks, it is more important to remember not the words that must be pronounced when omitting the rice, but the fact that, in our opinion, there should be much more broth, zirvak, than rice. On the contrary, you need a little rice. 300-400 grams is enough!
And let it cook, do not rush, do not turn up the heat and do not shovel the rice. Just level it out and leave it alone. He himself will appear above the surface in about ten minutes.

And soon the water will begin to boil away, and the rice will still be hard.
But keep in mind that the rice will become ready suddenly, just like in Uzbek pilaf!
So let's, don't hesitate, lay the shrimp on the surface, slightly drowning them in the rice. During the remaining time of cooking the rice, the shrimp will ripen!

In this place, real Spaniards take the paellera out into the fresh air and place it on the sand.
I also have sand, but I didn’t dare take such a frying pan to the gate - after all, it was lunch time!
You never know, you'll be left without paella, but with... bon appetit!
So I put the paella on cast iron pancake, which worked exactly like sand - it removed heat from the bottom.
After all, when the rice swelled, convection in the frying pan stopped completely; accordingly, the lower layer of rice received more heat and something like a kazmakh even formed there. So that this rice remains just golden brown, covered with a sort of crust, but does not burn completely black, and you need to quickly cool the pan.
You are experienced, you remember everything at once, I told you about the cauldron - as soon as you smell the characteristic smell of baked rice, put it in a bowl with cold water its bottom. Well, or you can put a paellera frying pan on a damp napkin folded in two or three layers - once, it sizzles, the bottom has cooled down, everything is in order, thank goodness for secondary education.

Let the paella sit a little longer, let the rice absorb the remaining zirvak, and that’s it! Ready!
Please eat while it's hot, and preferably straight from the frying pan!

PS What upsets me terribly is that the word paella comes from the name of the frying pan, and not from the word pilaf. After all, both the sounds and the cooking technology are similar. Well, in fact, if you took the cauldron away from the Uzbeks and settled them on the seashore, what kind of pilaf would they cook? Yes, this is how they would cook it - in a frying pan, with whatever God sends, with seafood, with peppers instead of carrots, with tomatoes and in olive oil instead of fat tail.
But there is one circumstance that makes me happy. Paella, like Uzbek pilaf, it’s customary to cook and eat... also on Thursdays!
Do you know why? Yes, because on the eve of Friday you are supposed to fulfill your marital duty. But an empty bag is not worth it!

PPS You just watched a video and read an article from two years ago. Then I wrote and cooked paella before I had even been to Spain. But this fall I spent a few days in and around Barcelona and deliberately ate paella a few times. Do you know what I want to tell you? Just shhh, don't yell or scream. This paella is much tastier than the authentic one! Don't believe me?

IN spanish cuisine there are many traditional dishes, but the most popular is paella. There are more than 300 recipes for the dish, but whatever they are, rice and saffron remain the same ingredients.

The Spaniards cook paella in a special frying pan called paella. It is made of thick metal, has impressive dimensions, low sides and a wide flat bottom. This allows you to place all the ingredients in it in one small layer, where the water evaporates evenly and quickly, preventing the rice from boiling.

In each province of Spain, paella is prepared differently. Typically, the composition includes products available to residents: chicken, rabbit, seafood, fish, green beans and tomatoes. There is nothing complicated in preparation, so anyone can make paella at home.

Paella with seafood

You will need:

400 gr. round grain rice;
a pair of large onions;
a couple of tomatoes;
olive oil;
0.5 kg of mussels in shells;
8 large shrimp;
250 gr. squid rings;
4 medium cloves of garlic;
a couple of sweet peppers;
1 carrot;
a bunch of parsley;
a whisper of saffron, bay leaf, salt.

Peel the onions, garlic and carrots. Remove the heads, shells and intestinal veins from the shrimp. Separate the leaves from the parsley. Place the shrimp shells and heads in a saucepan, add water and wait until it boils. Add carrots, 2 cloves of garlic, onion, bay leaf, parsley stems and salt. Cook for 30 minutes and strain the resulting broth.

Peel and then chop the tomatoes. Core the peppers and cut them into thin strips. Combine 2 cloves of garlic with parsley and grind into a paste. Dilute the saffron with a small amount of water.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan and place the washed midi in it, wait until they open and transfer to any suitable container. Place the peeled shrimp in the frying pan, soak them for 3 minutes, remove and transfer to the mussels.

Place tomatoes, crushed garlic, and squid in a frying pan and fry them for 4 minutes. Add the rice, stirring, cook for 6 minutes, add the pepper and cook the mixture for another 4 minutes. Pour the broth, saffron, salt into the pan, add mussels and shrimp and cook the rice until cooked.

Paella with chicken

You will need:

500 gr. chicken meat;
250 gr. round rice or "arabio";
250 gr. green peas;
1 medium sized onion;
Bell pepper;
2 cloves of garlic;
4 tomatoes or 70 gr. tomato paste;
a pinch of saffron;
0.25 liters of meat broth;
pepper and salt;
olive oil.

Wash and chop the chicken meat. Fry until nice golden crust. In another large, heavy-bottomed frying pan, sauté the diced onion and garlic in olive oil. Once the onion becomes translucent, add the diced pepper and fry the vegetables for a few minutes. Pour the rice into the pan and add a little oil and, stirring, cook over low heat for 3-5 minutes.

Add fried chicken, saffron, tomato paste, salt, peas and broth to the rice, mix everything, when the mixture boils, cook it over low heat for 20-25 minutes, during which time the liquid should evaporate and the rice should become soft. When the chicken paella is cooked, cover the pan and let it sit for 5-10 minutes.

Paella with vegetables

You will need:

1 cup long grain rice;
2 sweet peppers;
1 medium sized onion;
4 tomatoes;
3 medium cloves of garlic;
a pinch of saffron;
150 g, fresh green beans;
700 ml. chicken broth;
pepper and salt.

To prepare paella, start by preparing the vegetables. Wash them, peel the onions and garlic, remove the skin from the tomatoes, the hard tails from the beans, and the core from the peppers. Cut the garlic into thin slices, the onion into half rings, the pepper into strips, the tomatoes into cubes, the beans into pieces 2 cm long.

Fry the onion, pepper and garlic for about 4 minutes in a frying pan with heated oil. Add rice and saffron to them, stirring, fry them for 3 minutes over high heat. Add the broth and tomatoes, bring the mixture to a boil and simmer for 1/4 hour over low heat. Add the beans, pepper and salt, and simmer the paella with vegetables over low heat for about 10 minutes.